Man's Recipe: Sunny Acres Macaroni and Cheese

I have eaten many variations of macaroni and cheese. Some cooks make a top-notch product with plenty of cheese and moistness, but some throw things together very casually and the resulting product is definitely second rate. Reminds me a bit of the variations I find in bread pudding — all the way from soupy gruel to granular sawdust.

We all have definite opinions about foods, and all I ask is that you try this recipe once. One cup elbow macaroni, one half pound diced Cheddar or American cheese, two and a half cups white sauce, one cup bread crumbs, one third cup light cream, one fourth teaspoon thyme, one fourth teaspoon parsley flakes, one fourth teaspoon onion flakes.

Cook macaroni in one and a half quarts boiling water to which has been added one teaspoon salt. When macaroni is tender, drain under cold water. Put one half the macaroni in one and a half quart casserole. Scat­ter the parsley flakes, onion salt, and thyme. Scatter one half the diced cheese.

Put in the other half of the maca­roni and scatter balance of cheese. Pour in the third cup of cream. Scatter the bread crumbs and dot crumbs with 10 to 15 bits of butter the size of a pinto bean. Put on the white sauce. Bake at 400 until well-browned — about 35 to 40 minutes if your 400 is the same as ours.

To make the white sauce use four tablespoons of butter or mar­garine, two and a half cups milk, four tablespoons flour, one half tea­ spoon salt and one fourth teaspoon pepper. Melt butter in top of double boiler. Add flour and seasonings. Add milk, stirring constantly. Bring the sauce almost to the boiling point, but don't let it boil. Keep very hot for about 15 minutes, cooking until you get the thickness of sauce you prefer. I like maca­roni and cheese; it is a hearty, fill­ing dish and I like the flavor com­bination of this formula. I hope you will try it and see what you think.